Sept. 10, 2008

Complete Release in PDF Format

This Week
Saturday, September 13
LMU Alumni Game - 2:00 p.m., Sullivan Field

Briefly
The first two weekends of the season behind them, the Lions break from competition this week for their annual Alumni Game, scheduled for Saturday at 2 p.m. Please note that the game time has changed from its original posting of 11 a.m. LMU, who has faced ranked opponents in each of its first four games, returns to action with two more top-25 foes on its first road trip of the year next week. The Lions travel to Chicago to take on #14 Northwestern on Friday and #16 Illinois-Chicago on Sunday.

Listen To And Follow The Lions Live On The Web
Loyola Marymount University, in conjunction with Stretch Internet, is proud to present FREE live audio broadcasts over the World Wide Web on www.LMULions.com. Just click on the "Listen" or "Archive" link next to the game of your choice. All broadcasts will be archived within 72 hours of their original airing and will include both the pre-game and post-game shows.
All home games and select away games will be available live on Gametracker through the LMU website. Check www.LMULions.com for all Gametracker live stats information.

Media Guide
The 2008 LMU men's soccer media guide will be available to download soon at www.LMULions.com. This is the only source of copies of the guide.

Coming to a Game?
If you are planning to attend at game at LMU this season, then be sure to reserve your tickets today by ordering online at www.LMULions.com or calling the LMU Ticket Office at (310) 338-LION. The Loyola Marymount University campus is located in Westchester at 1 LMU Drive, approximately four miles north of the Los Angeles International Airport. Visitors must use the main entrance off of Lincoln Blvd. on LMU Drive. Parking for Sullivan Field will be in General Parking Lot A.

Last Week Recap: Lions Experience First Win, Loss of 2008
Having tied their first two games against ranked opponents the week before, LMU took to the field last week looking to register their first victory of the season with two more games against top-25 opponents. On Friday, that victory came in the form of a 1-0 triumph over #24 Cal Poly. The visitors had started stronger but the Lions were able to withstand the onslaught thanks to several excellent saves from junior goalkeeper Patrick Sampson. After a scoreless first half, sophomore Rafael Baca broke the deadlock in the 64th minute resulting from some fine teamwork down the right side. Senior Brad Stisser developed the play by taking the ball down the sideline and crossing low into the box. Freshman Phil Da Silva arrived first but his mis-hit shot ended up being the perfect pass as he redirected the ball into the path of Baca, who hammered home from eight yards out for his third career goal. Sampson did his part to preserve his first career shutout, making six saves.
The Lions looked to make it two in a row on Sunday when 7th-ranked UC Santa Barbara visited Sullivan Field. Things started well for the Lions as the striking duo of senior Jawaan Delaney and freshman Kyle Johanson linked up to give the Lions the lead after 13 minutes. Stisser was also integral to the move, collecting the ball on the right flank and playing a pretty one-two with Delaney. Stisser then sent a low cross into the box, where Johanson was positioned to finish into the lower right corner for his first career goal. LMU's lead would not last long, however, as the Gauchos were quick to strike back, equalizing just two minutes after Johanson's opener. The teams looked to be heading to overtime before the Gauchos caught the Lions twice on counter-attacks in the final seven minutes to put the match away. Redshirt freshman Jack McCormack made four saves for the Lions.

Patrick Sampson Named WCC Player of the Week
On the heels of his first career shutout, LMU junior goalkeeper Patrick Sampson was named the West Coast Conference Player of the Week for September 1-7, the conference office announced Monday. The award is Sampson's first of his career and first by a Lion since David Niemeyer in 2006. Making his second start of the season, Sampson (Lake Oswego, OR) was stellar in goal on Friday to help the Lions knock off 24th-ranked Cal Poly at home. The redshirt junior stopped six shots on the day, including two full-stretch dives, to preserve LMU's narrow 1-0 victory. In doing so, he lowered his goals-against-average to 0.45, second-best in the WCC. Sampson is the first LMU goalkeeper in 12 years to be named the WCC Player of the Week, joining Chris Walter (Oct. 8, 1996) as the only two Lion netminders to earn the honor.

Lions Move Up in Regional Rankings, Receiving Votes Nationally
LMU's hot start to the season has them receiving attention from both regional and national polls. The Lions are currently ranked sixth in the West Region according to the NSCAA while they are receiving votes nationally from College Soccer News.

McCormack, Sampson Patrol the Goal
The departure of Patrick Lane just before preseason started meant that competition for the starting goalkeeper job would be between redshirt junior Patrick Sampson and redshirt freshman Jack McCormack. So far, both have proved themselves well as each has started two games and played 200 minutes, alternating starts. Sampson got the nod in the opener against New Mexico, with McCormack starting against Saint Louis. Sampson returned between the pipes to help the Lions to their first win of the season, pitching a shutout to defeat Cal Poly. Yet for the next game, there was McCormack back in goal vs. UC Santa Barbara. Although he conceded three goals (in which he was caught on counterattacks for two), McCormack handled himself well and is expected to keep competing with Sampson.

LMU vs. Ranked Foes
LMU is 23-30-6 all-time against ranked foes but has done well recently, defeating at least two top-25 squads each season since 2001. In that time frame, the Lions are 21-22-3 against the top opponents, with 16 of those victories coming at home. Last season, the Lions were a bit of an anomaly, with all three of their victories coming against top-25 opponents as they defeated #17 New Mexico, #7 Harvard, and #23 Gonzaga, with the latter two coming at home. The loss against #7 UC Santa Barbara this season was LMU's first in the last five matches against a ranked opponent.

Young Cubs Coming Through
Head Coach Paul Krumpe started four freshmen in the opener and followed that by trotting out five, almost half the starters, in game two. With that sort of presence, it was inevitable that at least one frosh would get on the scoresheet, which was true as two out of LMU's three goals on the opening weekend were scored by newcomers. Now that they have four games under their belts, a quick look at the Lions' stat sheet shows that three freshmen (Logan McDaniel, Kyle Johanson, and Artur Jozkowicz) are tied for the team lead, alongside two sophomores, Rafael Baca and Sharif Khatib.
Through the season's first four games, only six players have started every match. Two of those, McDaniel and Roger Downes, are freshmen.

Don't Forget About the Old Guys
With all the focus on the younguns, LMU's senior class is making sure that its play is not overlooked. Brad Stisser and Stephen Carlson have started all four matches, with Stisser leading the team with two assists. Stisser linked up with classmate Jawaan Delaney to provide the assists on Rafael Baca's game-winning goal against Cal Poly.

Baca to His Old Ways
The only returning All-WCC player from last year for LMU, Rafael Baca has elevated his game with the new cast around him. Just a sophomore but already a team captain, Baca leads LMU in shot attempts (12) and recorded his first goal of the season against Cal Poly.